I Wanna Know What Love Is
by Gabbymadd22
Summary: Sam and Rachel are dating while he's a senior in high school and she's at NYADA. They both know that long-distant relationships are hard, but soon their love will be put to the test when new people come into the picture, and one of them will face the consequences when temptation gets in the way.
1. First Week Blues

**Hey, everybody, and welcome to my new project!**

**Just a word of wise, this is _NOT _a sequel to _Cause My Love is Secret_. This is a brand new story that takes place during season four (and a bit of season five, but that season is terrible already). I'll be introducing Brody whose role was pretty cool until Finn convinced him to go away (grr) and Penny because she's a pain in my blank who definitely looks like she'd be a good conflict started if Sam and Rachel were ever a couple. I swear, she makes me wanna stomp her into the ground...**

**But anyways, enjoy my story.**

**There will be minimal Samchel interaction in the beginning because it will be switching back and forth between Rachel's interactions at NYADA and Sam's interactions at McKinley. They'll meet up at random times though. I'm doing this because it will focus more on their feelings being apart, but it will get more dramatic towards the end, I promise.**

**This first chapter will have minimal Samchel interaction, but I'll be introducing Brody. I guess you can skip it...I just need a starting point.**

_**8 a.m.**_

Rachel's alarm on her phone beeped loudly as she reached under her pillow to turn it off. She sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. Grabbing her brush off the nightstand, she brushed out the tangles in her hair and stretched.

Soon, it was 8:15, time to Face-time Sam!

She hit the Face-time button on her phone, knowing that he would be fully awake and still getting ready for school. Finally, his cheerful face appeared on the screen. She admired how great he looked in his Letterman jacket and how his hair was still damp from a shower. He seemed to be sitting in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal.

"Well good morning, Sleeping Beauty!"

She giggled. "Good morning, my handsome prince. Are you ready for your first day of senior year?"

He nodded. "You bet. What are you up to today?"

She scratched her head. "Well Kurt and I are going to head to NYADA to pick up our schedules and I'm getting settled in my dorm and meeting my roommate. I start classes tomorrow."

"Oh, you're not staying with Kurt at his Aunt's house for the semester?"

She shrugged. "I want a _real _college experience, Sam. Kurt's only staying here a little longer and we're going to go apartment hunting."

Sam grinned. "Ah, soon you both will be living the glorious apartment life like me and Puck."

She nodded. "You bet we are."

"Sam, are you awake yet?" She head Puck call out in the background.

Sam turned over his shoulder. "Yeah, I'm jut eating breakfast and Face-timing with Rachel."

Suddenly, Puck came into the kitchen wearing only his boxers.

Rachel blushed and covered her eyes. "My goodness, Noah, put some clothes on!"

Puck smiled and flexed his muscles. "Aww, my hot Jewish-American Princess not into _this _anymore?"

Sam chuckled. "Seriously, Puck, go put some clothes on. I'm gonna be late."

Puck rolled his eyes and grabbed the carton of milk off the table. "You'll be on time, I promise."

"Oh, is Noah driving you to school?" Rachel asked.

Sam sighed. "Yeah, my truck's in the shop for a while. Thank god, Kurt's Dad can fix it for reasonable price."

She smiled. "That's good to hear. I miss you."

Puck poked his head into the shot. "Miss you too, Rach."

Sam pushed his head away. "Puck, get out of the shot and get dressed!"

Puck scurried out of sight laughing.

He turned back to the camera. "I miss you too, Rachel, it hurts. I can't wait until you come back for Thanksgiving."

She pouted. "It's only three months away, I'm sure you'll survive. You better finish getting ready."

He nodded. "All right, I'll text you later. Have a good day, sweetie."

She blew him a kiss. "You have a good first day, too. Love you!"

"Love you too, bye!"

There was a knock on the door, and Kurt poked his head in already dressed. "Woman, you better get out of that bed and get ready! I want to get there by at least 9:30 the latest so we can avoid big lines, you know!"

She swung her legs off the bed. "All right, all right. I'm up."

An hour later, they pulled into the NYADA parking lot and rushed inside with their appropriate papers. The whole building was crowded with people running left and right, but they were able to be somewhat in the middle of the line.

"I can't believe you're staying in a dorm." Kurt pouted. "Whose toenails am I going to paint in the middle of the night when I can't sleep?"

Rachel patted his shoulder. "Don't worry, it won't be long. It'll only be for a little while until we can find an apartment. And depending on our schedules, we can have early morning breakfast runs before class."

He shrugged. "We better!"

Finally, they got to the front of the line. Rachel handed the receptionist her papers.

"Rachel Berry." The young lady said, looking at her over her half-mooned spectacles. "Welcome to NYADA. Here is your schedule, and your room assignment. You'll be staying in the East Chester Hall, room 1302."

Rachel accepted her papers and smiled graciously. She stepped out of the line to wait for Kurt and examined her schedule.

_**Acting Techniques II**_

**MWF**

**9:00-10:50**

**Room A561**

**Mayberry, Jeff**

_**Dance 101**_

**MWF**

**11:00-12:15**

**Room D910**

**July, Cassandra**

_**Song Interpretation**_

**MWF**

**2:45-4:00**

**Room V611**

**Tibideaux, Carmen**

_**Dramatic Literature**_

**TR**

**10:30-11:50**

**Room L903**

**Dunham, Liam**

_**Intermediate Voice**_

**TR**

**V630**

**1:00-3:00**

**Blake, Sophie**

Kurt came up holding his folder. "Let me see your schedule." He examined it and smiled. "Hey, we have Acting Techniques and Dramatic Literature together! Hmm...your dance class and my improv class end at the same time so we could have our occasional lunch getaways."

Rachel grinned and jumped excitedly. "Yay!"

He picked up her suitcases. "All right, now where's your room? Let's get you all settled in."

As they walked down long hallways, squeezing past people walking in all directions, they chatted excitedly about how they hoped their first semester was going to be.

"I can't believe I get a class taught by Ms. Tibideaux, this is just too amazing." She sighed dreamily.

Kurt grinned. "You must have made quite an impression on her. I'm really glad for you."

Rachel took out her map and scanned it. "My, we're not even _close _to Chester Hall. This place is _huge_!"

He put on a sour face. "We'll get there. Are you trying to get rid of me already?"

She stopped in her tracks and put her arm around him. "Of course not, I wouldn't dare. I just can't wait to explore the campus."

He nodded. "I thought so. So I'll drop you off at your room so you can unpack, we can grab lunch and explore the campus, I'll drop you off again for a few hours so you can settle in, and then we can go about a night on the town. How does that sound?"

She squealed excitedly. "Sounds like a perfect plan. My, you seem to be ahead of the game."

He shrugged. "I do my best. This is just until we make some new friends, then we can work around it."

After a few more miles of walking, they _finally _got to her room.

Kurt looked over at her. "Ready to meet your roommate?"

She took a deep breath. "Yup, let's do this.

_**1 Week Later**_

Rachel stood in the hallway miserably leaning against the wall. She made it through her first week at NYADA and she hated it _already_: her roommate is always bringing back boys to their room to have sex with every night and barely acknowledges her, her dance teacher is super critical and already claimed to make Rachel's time in class a living hell...she just wanted to be either back home in Sam's comforting arms or at Kurt's Aunt's house having a nice hot cup of tea before bed.

She also had to schedule her nighttime bathroom routine to the late hours of the night in the co-ed bathrooms because honestly, how can you shower and moisturize when you know there is a couple probably making a baby right outside your bathroom?

All this misery made her miss Sam even more. Back in Lima whenever she was down, Sam always knew exactly what to do or say to cheer her up. Here in New York, all she had was Kurt during the day, and she hadn't even connected with anyone in her classes. She just wished she could hop on a plane and go back to Lima where she was home.

Choking down sobs, she pulled out her phone and called Sam, hopeful that his cheerful voice would ease her mind.

_Yo, it's Sam. You know what to do. Beep!_

"Sam," she croaked. "I don't know if you're out or asleep, but I _really _need to hear your voice. My first week at school has just been utterly terrible and I wish I could close my eyes and wake up in your bed wrapped in your warm arms. You always knew what to say when I was down and now I just have your voicemail to listen to. Everything sucks here! My roommate is a slut, my dance teacher is even worse that Coach Sylvester...I just wanna go home. Call me back, because I just _need _to hear you. Bye."

Gathering her pajamas, and bathroom bottles off the floor, she headed to the bathroom to shower.

While she was moisturizing, she suddenly heard a male singing voice. It was super weird because Rachel was always alone whenever she went at that hour, but the voice was coming from the shower. She slowly crept toward it to get a better listen.

Whoever was singing was singing _Sister Christian_, a song she knew well because Sam had sung it in the choir room once. He had a nice voice...different than Sam's, but it was nice.

Suddenly, the shower turned off, snapping her out of her reverie. Before she had a chance to run back to the sink, a guy stepped out of the shower. She squealed, dropped her lotion bottle and covered her eyes. She heard him gasp and, judging from the fact that his feet didn't move, they were standing there staring at each other. She felt her face turn red and hot because when they startled each other, she actually caught a glimpse of his _whole_ body. It was a sight that definitely wouldn't be erased from her mind. His body was kid of like Sam's, toned and built. The only difference between them was that Sam was pale and this guy was tan.

"I put a towel on." He said. "You can uncover your eyes now."

She slowly lowered her hands from her eyes, but was too embarrassed to look him in the eyes so she instead focused on his broad chest. "I-I," She stammered. "I'm ever so sorry. I didn't mean to spy on you or anything."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? Because honestly, I don't usually get jumped, surprised, or startled when I come out of the shower."

"I thought I was alone, that's all." She said. "I'm usually in here by myself when I'm doing my bathroom routine, and I didn't see you come in.

He glanced at the clock on the opposite wall. "At one in the morning? And you didn't hear me come in because I used the _other _entrance and the back showers."

She shrugged. "I can't shower in my dorm room. I have classes during the day, and my roommate is always in there having sex with all the boys, so I can't shower knowing they're doing that right outside the door."

He nodded understandingly. "Ah, I see. You can look up at me, you don't have to be afraid, you know. It was just an accident."

She looked up at him and noticed that he had clear blue eyes...kind of like Sam.

"So what's your name, shower girl? I'm assuming your a freshman because the other upperclassmen shower during the day." He spoke up.

She scoffed. "Shower girl's name is Rachel Berry. And yes, I'm a freshman."

He nodded and stuck out his hand. "Good to know, shower girl. I'm Brody Weston, junior. And for the record, I also use the co-ed bathroom at this late hour because I get off work so late."

She shook his hand. "What do you do for a job that makes you work so late?"

"Can't tell you." He replied. "You're a stranger." He walked around her to the sink at set his shower bag down. "So care to tell me why you accidentally stumbled upon me?"

She walked over to him and crossed her arms. "I heard you singing. You have a nice voice."

He smiled. "Thanks. You sing, too? I assume you're pretty good since you're here."

She shrugged. "Well I don't mean to _brag_, but I sing, I dance, and I act."

Brody squeezed some lotion onto his hands and rubbed it on his arms. "I see. How do you like NYADA so far?"

She sighed and leaned her elbows on the sink. "It's my first week and I'm already hating it. I can't wait to get out of here."

He started at her incredulously. "You're leaving New York so soon?"

Rachel took her hairbrush out of her bag and began brushing. "No, I'm moving out. My friend Kurt from high school also goes here with me and we're looking for an apartment. But I'll still be going here. It's the curriculum that stinks. My roommate is a...swinger, my dance teacher actually claimed to make my life a living hell..."

He whistled. "You have Miss July, I see. She always does that, she doesn't play favorites. Don't let her get to you. And that's good that you're staying at NYADA, I would have missed getting jumped in the shower."

She whacked him with her brush. "You better drop that shower girl business or I'll disappear from here forever."

Brody rubbed his hand where she whacked him. "Ouch! Beautiful, talented, and violent! Geeze, you're a knock-out. Fine, I'll drop the name." He picked up his clothes and started getting dressed. "Not going to hide your face this time?"

She rolled her eyes. "I've already seen all of you. It's not shameful anymore."

After her finished dressing, he put his hands on her shoulders. "Okay, I know that your first week may have been crappy, but that's because you're just not used to everything yet. You're used to your old high school life where everything was practically handed to you and everyone told you what you wanted to hear. Now you're in college...in New York of all places where _no one's _nice at all. You just need to learn the ropes, and then you'll be just fine. New York is all about _changes_, so why not start making new memories now?"

He gathered up his bag and previous clothes. "I hope to see you around campus soon, Rachel."

After he left, she instantly smiled.

Her phone rang in her pocket, and her smile grew bigger when she saw it was Sam calling.

"_Rachel, I got your message! Honey, are you okay?" _He asked in a panic.

"I'm fine now, Sam." She said reassuringly. "I was just having a mental breakdown, but then I took a shower and now I feel fine."

She heard him sigh in relief. _"That's good, you had me worried. I'm sorry you had a shitty first week. I wish you were home with me too." _He noticed the short silence on her end. _"Do you want me to go there? Because I don't mind skipping school and hopping on a plane to make you feel better."_

She giggled. "Don't be silly, Sammy. I wouldn't want you to miss school. And, it's only the first week. Have the rest of the semester to make it better, I just have to get used to it all."

"_That's my girl. But just so you know, you can't win over everybody. There will be people rotting for you to fail, that's what makes you stronger."_

She sighed and leaned against the wall, her heart beating rapidly. "You always know what to say. That's why I love you."

"_And I love you because you're headstrong. You're gonna get through this, everything's gonna be okay. And you're not alone, you have Kurt there with you. And it won't be long until you're back for Thanksgiving."_

"I know, I can't wait to see you!" She exclaimed excitedly. "I miss you so much, it hurts."

"_You're gonna be all right, baby. And I can't wait until you're home so I can hold you in my arms again."_

Rachel felt her lip quivering and her throat stiffening. "Me too. I love you, Sam. We'd better get to bed, we have school."

"_I know, I know. Are you okay now?"_

"I'm fine, now that I talked to you."

"_I'm glad. Have a good night, Rach. I love you, baby."_

"I love you too. Sweet dreams."

She hung up, closed her eyes and sighed. She was always glad to talk to Sam, whether it was on Skype, Face-Time, or just a simple call. She gathered up her things and headed back to her dorm.

However, as she was leaving the bathroom, for a split second...she also couldn't wait to see Brody again.

_**The Next Day**_

"All right, you dummies." Miss July announced to the class. "We have ourselves a new Teacher's Assistant, but don't go sucking up to him. He's a wonderful dancer with hot abs. So please, treat him with the uttermost respect and inner hatred you all harbor for me."

The door opened and Rachel gasped when Brody walked in. He gave everyone a polite wave and clapped his hands together. "All right, everyone partner up. Today, we're doing the tango. Remember, it's a dance about seduction, jealousy, tension, sensuality...so let's see some sexy here."

He gestured for Rachel to come over to him, but Miss July stopped her. "Not so fast, Schwimmer, you maybe dancing with my new T.A., but you better show me some sex appeal or you'll spend the rest of the semester in the back corner doing jazz-hands."

Brody approached Rachel, and held her into position. "No need to worry, I'll have her showing sex appeal in no time."

Miss July gave her a scornful look and strode away.

Rachel sighed as they began dancing. "Thanks so much. What are you doing here?"

He grinned. "I applied as a T.A. So I can keep an eye on you and save you. I'm also quite a good dancer, if I never mentioned it." He glanced at Miss July real quick. "You better show Miss July _something_ if you want to avoid doing jazz-hands."

Her eyes widened. "Um...I'm not sure I can."

He leaned down to her and whispered. "Don't worry, I'll help you."

She smiled and followed his lead for the rest of the lesson.

**And that's the end of the first chapter. Remember, this is just a starting point. Next chapter, we'll switch over to McKinley and focus on Sam's interaction with Penny...ew. Enjoy!**


	2. Waiting For a Girl Like You

**Welcome, all to chapter 2! This chapter, we'll be focusing on Sam's interaction with Penny...I shudder typing this. Enjoy!**

Sam headed to the nurse's office to fetch band-aids for his teacher, Mrs. Blart.

He knocked on the door, and a sweet girlish voice answered. "Come on in, whoever you are!"

He pushed open the door and was greeted by a teenage girl wearing a bright pink dress shuffling through a box of syringes. She looked up when he closed the door and almost dropped the box. "Oh my...hello."

He waved politely. "Hi, I need some more band-aids for Mrs. Blart's class.

The girl kept staring at him, blinking. Hew jaw dropped a bit, and it started to make him uncomfortable.

He rubbed his neck. "Uh, we're out of band-aids. Can I get some more?"

His voice seemed to snap out of her reverie. "Uh, oh...yeah." She opened a drawer of the desk and handed him a box. "I'm sorry for staring."

He took the box and looked around. "Where's Nurse Gail? Who are you?"

She smiled again and stuck out her hand. "I'm Penny Owen, sophomore at James A Rhodes State College. I'm in the nursing program, and this is my volunteer portion of the program. I'm just helping out Nurse Gail, she's grabbing some lunch right now."

He nodded. "Right. Well...I'm Sam Evans, nice to meet you."

She giggled and flipped her hair. "I'm so sorry for staring earlier, you're just _amazingly _cute."

He grinned. "Well thank you, I appreciate it."

She crossed her arms and leaned against the desk. "You're gonna be seeing me around here a lot, Sam. I'm also gonna be coming to classes doing CPR demonstrations."

He shrugged and started playing with the plastic skull on the desk. "Oh, that's great. I already know CPR, but another class won't hurt."

Penny nodded and bit her lip, realizing that she wasn't getting anywhere. She tapped her fingers on the desk. "Okay, well if that's all..."

Sam turned to her and waved again waved again. "Thanks for the band-aids. I guess I'll see you around, Penny."

She smiled. "You too, Sam. Have a good day. I hope your teacher enjoys the band-aids."

_**Later **_

Sam walked into history class and saw a nervous looking Artie sitting at his desk. "Artie, what's wrong?"

"Flu-shots today!" Artie said anxiously. "I hate needles!"

Before he could say anything, his teacher, Mr. Rubens walked in holding a list. "Sam, to the nurse's office with you."

Before he left, Mr. Rubens handed him a lollipop. "Just in case."

When he got to the nurse's office, he saw Penny washing her hands at the sink. "Hi again, Penny."

She turned around and gave him a sly smile. "Hello again, Sam Evans. We meet again."

Sam hopped onto the bed and rolled up his sleeve. "Let's get this over with."

She fixed up her syringe and walked over to him. "Oh, not so fast, Sam. We have a few mandatory procedures I have to go through before I inject you." She leaned down, grabbed his chin and turned his head left and right. "First I have to make sure there's no discoloration in your face." As she was looking, she stared at his big, juicy lips. "My, you have big lips!" She then looked in his eyes and admired how blue they are. "Just checking to see if your eyes are dilated. If they are, I'll have to treat you for that, too." Lastly, she put her hand on his forehead. "Good, no fever."

While she was doing all that, Sam suddenly started feeling hot. He missed Rachel's touches. He remembered when he had a fever once, she brought him over to his house and checked him up and down, left and right, and nursed him back to health. He felt so safe and secure then. Now she was thousands of miles away, and a slightly attractive nurse had taken her place. God, he missed her! He tried to picture Rachel was once again with him, doing all those things. She looked _really _sexy in a nurse's uniform.

He suddenly felt a bulge in his pants, so he quickly shifted. He then felt his face get hot and he started to sweat a bit.

Penny looked up at him. "Sam, what's wrong? You're suddenly starting to sweat, and you're turning red!"

He cleared his throat. "I...um...I'm just nervous. I don't like needles."

She laughed. "No one does. But it'll be over before you know it."

He swallowed. "Right. Well...can I get a drink of water before we do this?"

She looked at her watch and shook her head. "No time, I'm on a schedule here. I promise, it'll be over before you know it. Just...close your eyes and think of something nice, and it'll be all over."

Instead of thinking of something nice, he tried to picture something weird. _Coach Beiste as blue as an avatar wearing a bikini! Coach Beiste as blue as an avatar wearing a bikini! _The thought of it just made him burst out laughing.

Penny raised her eyebrow. "Good grief, Sam, you're a bit _too _distracted, but it's over now."

He shook his head. "Did you do it yet?"

She stared at him. "Yeah, right before you started laughing. What were you thinking about?"

He blinked and coughed. "Uh...nothing. So can I go now?"

She nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'll see you around, I guess."

He hopped off the bed and rushed out, desperate to get to a bathroom. He was gonna need a cold shower later.

_**The Next Day**_

As Sam made his way to the cafeteria, he bumped into Penny who was leaving the nurse's office. "Hey, Penny."

She turned to him and grinned. "Well hey again, Sam! Off to lunch?"

He nodded. "Yup. You too?"

"I am." She replied. "I wish I wasn't eating alone, though. I'm not allowed to eat in the Teacher's Lounge because I'm not a teacher so I ate in the office by myself yesterday."

He pointed down the hall with his thumb. "You can join me and my friends in the cafeteria. We're having tacos today."

Penny threw her head back and laughed. "Sam, I'm a college student. I think I'm allergic to cafeteria food. I was going to Panera's, would you like to join me?"

He shrugged. "Won't I get in trouble for leaving campus?"

She rolled her eyes. "Not if you're with me. I promise, we'll be quick and I'll have you back way before lunch ends. It's only five minutes from here."

After a few seconds of contemplating, he nodded. "All right, I'll go. And I'll eat in here with you so you're not alone and my friends don't get jealous of my awesome lunch."

She clapped her hands. "Great, let's go!"

Half an hour later, they were back in the nurse's office eating their lunches. Sam had a bacon turkey bravo sandwich, and Penny had a chicken salad sandwich.

"So what do you do here? Are you part of any extra-curricular activities?" She asked.

He nodded. "I'm on the football team and part of the Glee Club."

She grinned. "Cool! I wish I could sing...but I can't, so I'm a nurse's assistant. Can you sing something for me?"

He shook his head. "I can't sing while I'm eating. Not good for the throat. I do impressions though, and I can speak Na'vi."

Her eyes lit up. "Oh my goodness, I **LOVE**_ Avatar! _Can you do some impressions then?"

He spent the next two minutes doing impressions of Nicholas Cage. Sean O'Connery, Matthew McConaughey, and James Earl Jones to which she laughed at jubilantly.

"Sam, those are _so _good, you should be a stand-up comedian or something like on SNL. Now come on, can you sing just a _little _bit?"

He shrugged and took another bite of his sandwich. "I don't have my guitar with me. It's sitting in the choir room."

"You can use mine!" She exclaimed. Setting down her sandwich, she went behind the desk and pulled out a pink guitar case. "I've been playing since I was nine, it's one of my hobbies. I usually play it during my spare time, even here. Taylor sure has gotten me through a lot." She handed him the guitar. "So what kind of music do you like?"

He took the guitar and examined it. "Mostly rock. I once created a one-man cover band called the Justin Bieber Experience to win back my ex-girlfriend, but that didn't work much. And I've kind of lost respect for him in the recent events."

She pouted. "What a shame, I would have loved to hear you sing some classic Bieber. Oh well, sing something rock then."

"Okay, then. Let me see." He thought for a second, and then decided to play the song that he played for Rachel on their fifth date.

_So long__  
__I've been looking too hard, I've waiting too long__  
__Sometimes I don't know what I will find__  
__I only know it's a matter of time__  
__When you love someone__  
__When you love someone___

_It feels so right, so warm and true__  
__I need to know if you feel it too___

_Maybe I'm wrong__  
__Won't you tell me if I'm coming on too strong?__  
__This heart of mine has been hurt before__  
__This time I wanna be sure_

Penny's eyes widened and she sighed dreamily.

_I've been waiting for a girl like you__  
__To come into my life__  
__I've been waiting for a girl like you__  
__A love that will survive__  
__I've been waiting for someone new__  
__To make me feel alive__  
__Yeah, waiting for a girl like you__  
__To come into my life_

She clapped excitedly and took another bite of her sandwich. "That was amazing, Sam! You really _do _have a nice voice."

He grinned. "Thanks, my girlfriend loves that song."

Penny choked on her sandwich. "_GIRLFRIEND!?"_

He nodded and stroked the strings of the guitar. "Yeah, her name's Rachel. She graduated last semester and she's at a performing arts college in New York."

She patted her back and took a sip of her coke. "And...you guys are still dating even though she's thousands of miles away? You're still going strong?"

"Yup." He replied simply. "I miss her like _crazy _though. Here," He pulled out his phone and showed her a picture of them at the park. "this is a picture of us before she left. She'll be back in November for Thanksgiving, though. I really can't wait to see her."

While he admired the picture on his phone, he didn't notice Penny pouting in her seat.

She tapped her foot impatiently. "The bell's gonna ring in a few minutes. You better get to class."

He looked up at the clock and jumped up. "You're right. Thanks for taking me out to lunch, Penny. See you around!"

She gave him a small wave and sat back in her seat scowling.

When he got home from school, he decided to lie down for a nap. He was woken up by Puck shaking him a few hours later. "Hi there, Puck."

Puck smiled. "Good evening, sleepy head. I brought home some pizza for dinner, are you hungry?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I am."

As Puck was leaving the room, a cell phone at Sam. "You got a missed call from Rachel. She called a few hours ago."

Sam's eyes widened and he grabbed his phone and pressed Face-Time. He hoped she wasn't busy.

Finally, she answered, but he could barely see her. She seemed to be in a dimly-lit place and it was very noisy.

However, he could still he a flash of that amazing smile he loved. "Hey, babe."

She waved excitedly. _"Hi, Sammy! How are you?"_

He squinted. "I'm good, but I can barely see you."

She nodded. _"Yeah, Kurt and I are out to dinner. You're lucky we picked a restaurant that has WI-FI. Hold on, I'll step outside." _She stood up and turned to Kurt. _"Text me when the food gets here._"

He heard Kurt's whines voice off-screen. _"You're just gonna leave me here __**alone**__? If I get mugged or something, I'm holding you personally responsible."_

She rolled her eyes. _"Kurt, __**please**__? I won't be long, I promise. Just don't look too obvious."_

After a few minutes of the camera being wobbly, she was finally outside. _"Ooh, it's chilly out here. So how was your day?"_

He shrugged. "Fine, I guess. I got my flu-shot yesterday."

She winced. _"Ouch, I hate needles. Did it go okay?"_

He nodded. "Yeah, I just thought of something funny and it was over before I knew it."

She giggled. _"I'd sure distract myself too if Nurse Gail was giving me a shot."_

His stomach tightened for a second, but he decided not to tell her that Penny, the pretty nurse's assistant was the one that gave him the shot. "I miss you...so much."

She sighed. _"I miss you so much, too. I definitely can't wait until November when I come back. How are Grease rehearsals?"_

"Going great, we're all doing a real good job. Artie's still a little upset because Blaine didn't want to play Danny Zucko because he was still depressed."

Rachel bit her lip. _"I wish I could say the same about Kurt. He only cried for two days and then he got over it pretty fast."_

Sam scratched his neck. "Yeah, well temptation's a bitch. What day are you coming back?"

She gave him a sneaky smile. _"Now __**that **__I can't tell you. It'll be a surprise."_

He chuckled. "Well I'd better get planning on what we're gonna do."

She thought for a second. _"Do these plans involve...a bed?"_

He nodded. "Whatever you want, babe."

Puck's voice floated into the room from the kitchen. "Sam, you better get some pizza or I'll eat it all!"

Rachel checked her phone. _"I have to go, too. Kurt just texted that our food's here."_

He sighed. "Okay, I'll talk to you later. I love you."

She blew him a kiss. _"Love you too. Enjoy your pizza!"_

He waved and hung up the phone. Holding it to his chest, he sighed and gazed up at the ceiling until Puck called him again.

"SAM!"


	3. Shock Treatment

**Hm, no reviews yet? Oh well, someone's bound to review sooner or later. I've been through this before, I just have to be patient.**

**Welcome to chapter 3, everyone!**

"There!" Rachel exclaimed as she placed an artificial basket of flowers on a shelf. "We're _officially _decorated and moved in."

It was true: a few weeks earlier, she and Kurt went apartment hunting and found one in Bushwick, only about twenty minutes from NYADA. The rent was $1800 a month, which her parents and Kurt's parents chipped in to help pay for. The first two nights were spent cleaning up and painting, and the rest of the week was dedicated to shopping for decorations. After both their parents shipped their important things like a couch, a bed, kitchen supplies, all that was left was to decorate which took another week. There was only one bathroom, which was perfectly fine with them. The apartment had three bedrooms, but no doors or walls to separate them from the rest of the rooms, so they bought curtains to enforce privacy.

She took a step back and admired everything. "Kurt, come and look. We are officially moved into our first apartment!"

Kurt came out of his room all dressed up in a fancy vest and tie. "I know, I can't believe it either."

She stared at him in shock. "You're going out? On our first _official _night as apartment renters?"

He rolled his eyes. "Rachel, you _know _I have my interview for an internship at Vogue. I'll make it up to you tomorrow night because I don't know how long I'll be."

She pouted and crossed her arms. "Kurt Hummel, I honestly cannot believe you are leaving me here by myself on the first night in our apartment! What if we get robbed or something?"

He sighed. "I have extra mace under my bed, you'll be fine. Rachel, we're in _Bushwick._ Just call me if we have another 1977 blackout. Why don't you invite your friend Brody over if you're scared to be alone?"

She walked over to him and fixed his tie. "I think I will. Can't you stay until he gets here so you can meet him?"

He looked at his watch and shook his head. "No time, my interview is at eight and I have to make the seven-fifteen train. I trust you, though, not to get involved with any funny business."

She giggled. "Oh, Kurt, I would _never _anything to jeopardize my relationship with Sam."

He wagged his finger at her. "Don't be so sure, temptation _is _a thing, you know."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "Go do your interview, Kurt."

He smiled. "Okay, fine. Give me a kiss for luck." She leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Thanks, doll, I'll see you later. I'm gonna lock the door on my way out."

She gave him a small wave. "Break a leg on your interview!"

After he left, she decided to explore her newly-furnished apartment, letting it all sink in. She flopped onto the couch and decided to call Sam.

_Yo, it's Sam. You know what to do. Beep!_

"Hi, Sam, it's me. Kurt and I are _officially_ moved into our apartment. As in all decorated, all painted, all furnished. Kurt left me by myself tonight, though because he has an interview tonight. I'm bored. Call me back, I wanna hear from you. Love you! Bye!"

When she hung up, she sulked around for a while, then decided to call Brody.

"_Brody Weston, talk to me."_

She smirked. "So professional of you, Mister Weston."

"_Rachel? Hey, what's up? Sorry, my job requires me to have my phone on me 24/7."_

"Oh really? Will you tell me _now _what you do?"

"_I just do odd-jobs around town. I make pretty good money and it helps pay for my semesters."_

She nodded. "That's good. So what are you doing tonight? Are you working?"

"_Nope, I'm off tonight. What are you up to?"_

She puffed up her chest proudly. "Well I can proudly say that Kurt and I are _officially _moved into our apartment. As in fully furnished, painted decorated, etc. I was wondering if you wanted to come over."

"_Don't you wanna spend your first night with Kurt?"_

She sighed. "Yeah, but Kurt had to run off for a job interview so I'm by myself tonight. So I called you to see if you wanted to hang out."

"_Sure, sounds great! I can even bring over some pizzas and some movies if that's okay."_

She grinned. "Yeah, that sounds great. But vegetarian pizza, please."

He chuckled. "_I know, I know. Where do you live so I know what train to take."_

"Our apartment's in Bushwick. Is that too far for you?"

"_Nope, I'm actually stepping out of NYADA now so it's about twenty minutes. I'll be there with the pizzas and the movies."_

"Sounds great. I'll see you then."

When she hung up, she ran to the bathroom and began putting on makeup. Then she ran to her room to pick out an outfit, but suddenly stopped. Why was she getting all prettied up for Brody? He was _just _a friend.

_Just _a friend with toned abs and beautiful blue eyes...

_Stop it, Rachel_! She scolded herself. _Think about Sam._

As if on cue, her phone buzzed in her pocket with a text from him.

_Guyz nite at me and Puck's place. Still want me to call you?_

She rolled her eyes and shook her head. _No, I'm fine. Have fun at your guys night, I'll text you later._

A second later, her phone beeped again. _Laters, baby._

Thirty minutes later, there was a knock on the at the door. "Pizza delivery!"

She opened it at Brody was in the doorway holding a bouquet of roses, a champagne bottle, and two pizza boxes. "Hey there."

She giggled. "Hello yourself, stranger. Come on in!"

He stepped inside and handed her the flowers. "For your new apartment."

She pressed the flowers to her nose and inhaled the scent. "These are lovely, thank you so much."

Brody set the pizza boxes and the bottle on the table. "I got your dinner: one vegetarian pizza for you, one Hawaiian pizza for me, and a bottle of sparkling cider since you're nineteen."

She grinned. "Why thank you. What movies did you bring?"

He reached into his jacket and pulled out two DVDs. "I brought _The Rocky Horror Picture Show _and it's proceeding spin-off, _Shock Treatment_."

She tilted her head in confusion. "I haven't seen _Shock Treatment_."

He held it up to her. "It's a spin-off, but has absolutely _nothing _to do with the original plot. Brad and Janet are in it, but their plot line surrounds a completely different story. Some of the original cast members play different characters. You're gonna have to see it to..._try _to understand it."

She popped _The Rocky Horror Picture Show _into the DVD player. "I was actually in a production of the Rocky Horror Show. I played Janet."

He whistled. "I wouldn't have expected anything less." He picked up the pizza boxes and headed to the couch. "Ready to watch?"

She grabbed plates and glasses and sat next to him on the couch. "I'm ready."

He poured the cider in both glasses and raised them up. "To your next big step in becoming a New Yorker."

She clinked her glass against his and took a swig. "Cheers."

As the movie progressed, they talked, they laughed, they sang...they even danced to the _Time Warp_. Even the _Toucha-Toucha-Toucha Touch Me _wasn't awkward at all because it reminded her of the slight-awkwardness she felt performing it with Sam and Mr. Schuester.

When the movie ended, she yawned.

"Are you too tired to watch the next movie? Should we call it a night?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm perfectly fine. I'm just a bit exhausted from all the decorating Kurt and I have been doing this past week."

He nodded understandingly. "I understand completely." He patted his lap. "Here, lay your head in my lap. I'll wake you up if you fall asleep."

She laid her head down as he started the movie. It seemed quite interesting at first. Completely different plot-line, new characters played by original actors, _definitely _original songs...but the rest was kind of dull. What was the plot line even _about, _anyway?

She then noticed that Brody started to softly stroke her hair, but his eyes were still fixed on the screen. He also started singing softly, and it made her relax. She soon started drifting off to sleep and visualized him doing pirouettes in a really tight leotard.

Suddenly, she was shaken awake. "Rachel, wake up."

She blinked and sat up. Instantly, she felt a bit of dampness out of the corner of her mouth, so she quickly wiped it. "Did I fall asleep?"

He chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, you did. I didn't notice until I felt something wet on my pants that realized you were drooling."

She flushed. "I'm so sorry, did I drool a lot? I'll go dry your pants."

He patted her shoulder. "It's fine, only a tiny bit. Maybe we should just call it a night and finish the movie another time. Maybe during the day."

She nodded and stood up, gathering the plates and glasses. "What time is it?"

He looked at his watch. "About ten-thirty."

She stretched and hurried to the sink, desperate to get some space from him.

Brody cautiously approached her. "Are you all right, Rachel?"

She nodded and frantically began washing the dishes. "Uh-huh. Yup, mhmm, yes, I'm perfectly fine."

He stared at her oddly, and then began to sing while slowly easing up to her.

_I feel the heat from your skin  
And the stubble on your chin  
You're no good_

_You're no good _

She giggled, but continued to wash the dishes without looking at him.

_You've got dirt on your hands  
And everybody understands  
You're no good  
You're no good_

He turned away from her, sighing heavily.

_Oh, what a joke _

_What a joke_

_You feel like choking_

_You play for broke_

_You play for broke_

_He'll leave you smoking_

He turned back to her and eased up against her gently. She could feel the tickle of his hot breath against her skin and it made her feel hot and achy.

_Oh, romance is not a children's game _

_But you keep going back__  
__It's driving you insane_

She turned her head to him and realized that their faces were mere inches from each other. Their noses were barely touching, and their lips were _dangerously _close. She saw him moving in closer, but suddenly felt as if she touched a hot stove and sprung back. "No!"

He gasped in surprise. "Rachel, what's wrong?"

She held her head in her hands. "I can't do this, I just can't! Brody...you're _very _attractive, and I really hope I didn't lead you on, but I have a boyfriend back home. His name is Sam, and I love him _ever _so much. I would _never _be unfaithful to him, I'm sorry."

He gaped at her for a few seconds. "No, _I _should be sorry. I over-stepped my boundaries, I'm sorry about that." He blinked. "But you _do _know things like that are bound to happen, right?"

She suddenly remembered both what Kurt and Sam said about temptation.

_Don't be so sure, temptation **is **a thing, you know._

_Yeah, well temptation's a bitch._

She looked down shamefully. "I know." She said softly.

He leaned on the counter and crossed his arms. "That's why it's not advised to be in a long-distance relationship, _especially _when college is the situation. I had a girlfriend back home when I came here, but we broke up six months after I started. That's the way life is. Screws fall out all the time, the world's an imperfect place. It's bound to happen _sometime_, and you just can't control it." When he noticed her not looking up at him, he put his hand on her shoulder. "But if it makes you feel better, I'll respect your boundaries. We can start out as friends if you'd like."

She smiled. "Thank you, Brody. I appreciate it."

He picked up the pizza boxes and headed to the door. "I had fun tonight, we should hang out again soon."

She nodded and followed him out. "Yeah, we should. Thanks again for stopping by."

Before he left, he took one look at her. "Look at you, all ready set on your transformation. Work it, Rachel, I'll see you at school."

She gave him a small wave. "See ya, Brody."

After he left, she felt a sense of uneasiness. She almost _kissed _Brody. If she did, she would have already automatically cheated on Sam. But why did she always feel so comfortable with Brody? She felt the same warm comfortness she felt whenever Sam was around, and frankly it made her head spin. Although she didn't want to cheat on Sam, she _really _wanted to know how it would have felt if she actually kissed Brody.

She shook her head trying to rid herself of those thoughts. She would deal with those feelings later. She had more important things to focus on.

_Transformation..._

She headed to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She still looked like her old high school self. Same plain-Jane Rachel. She then walked over to her closet and examined her clothes, remembering the exact moments she wore them in high school. The Peter-Pan collared blouses, she plaid skirts, the animal sweaters...yeesh, what made her think dressing like a Catholic schoolgirl was okay? She was an adult in college now, it was time to simplify and tone it down a notch. Okay, maybe not _too_ much. She could still look elegant and mature. Now about her makeup and hair...

Just then, the door opened again and Kurt's voice rang through the apartment. "Rachel, I'm home! Were you okay?"

She stepped out of her room. "Yes, I was fine. How did your interview go?"

He undid his tie. "I hope it went well. My interviewer who looks _exactly _like Sarah-Jessica Parker was impressed with my portfolio and she said I'll be hearing back from her by the end of the weekend." He noticed that she had a vague stare on her face. "Are you okay?"

She nodded. "Kurt...we're adults in college in New York now. I think I need a makeover."

His eyes suddenly lit up and his mouth turned up to a wide grin. "I was _hoping _for the day you'd say that! Get your hairdryer, hairbrushes, all your makeup, and your emergency credit card. Tonight, we'll work on your face and hair, and tomorrow we're going on a shopping spree. Girlfriend, you have just _made _my night!"

She smiled and hugged her to him, wondering what Sam would think about her new look.

**And that's the end of chapter three.**

**See if you can spot the two references I made within the chapter. One is a reference to a somewhat popular book and the other is a quote from a popular 80s movie. Enjoy!**

**And PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review!**


	4. Reunited, and It Feels So Good

**Thank you so, so much for my first two reviews for this story! You people are amazing, and I love you for it.**

**Here is chapter four. We will see our very first Samchel face-to-face interaction. Enjoy!**

**Oh by the way, I'm going with the actual musical version of Grease instead of the film version.**

**Yup, this chapter's gonna be a long one. I think it's the longest chapter out of all my stories. **

Rachel and Kurt gazed excitedly as their plane landed back in Lima. They _so _couldn't wait to see their families again after three months, and would be spending Thanksgiving with each other. Thanksgiving would be held at the Berry house, with the Hummel-Hudson and Evans family.

Rachel was _more _excited to see Sam though. She didn't tell him what day she was flying in because she was hoping to surprise him and watch his performance in _Grease _which was the day before Thanksgiving. In fact, _no one _knew they were flying in at all.

The plane came to a complete stop, and they grabbed their luggage from the overhead compartment.

"Good thing we didn't have to check anything in since we're only here until Sunday." Kurt claimed.

Rachel nodded. "Very true about that."

"Are your Dads picking us up?" He asked.

"Yup." she replied. "Do you want to go home or do you want to stop by my house real quick to relax?"

He shrugged. "I think I'll go home. I practically _live_ with you and we're still gonna be hanging out anyway."

"Okay then, tell Finn I said hi."

He laughed. "Say hi to him yourself, you're gonna be seeing him when you stop by _Grease _rehearsals anyway, remember? He's directing it with Artie, and taking over the Glee Club while Mr. Schuester's in Washington D.C.?"

She gasped. "Oh, really? Huh, well, good for him, I suppose. You're coming with me to rehearsals, right?"

He paused before answering. "I'm not sure."

She rolled her eyes. "You don't have to acknowledge him if you don't want to, Kurt. At least say hi to everyone else like Artie, Tina, Brittany...Mike and Mercedes are gonna be there too to help out. And as our duty as former Glee Club legends, we simply _must _meet the newbies."

He sighed. "Fine, but I'm _not_ talking to Blaine Anderson."

She grabbed his hand and shook it violently. Gosh, this boy was stubborn! "You don't have to. Now hurry up, we're holding up the line." She remarked.

When they got off the plane and got through the gate, she scanned the crowd for her Dads. It wasn't hard to find them...one Dad (Leroy) was more fit, and the other one (Hiram) was more lean and gentle. And the fact that they were holding a sign that said **RACHEL BERRY AND KURT HUMMEL**.

"Dad, Daddy!" She called out.

They turned to her, instantly smiled, tossed away the sign and went running toward them. She also started running, dragging her roll-on luggage behind her. When they met in the middle, she threw her arms around both of them, hugging them tightly while they picked her up and spun her around.

"We missed you, baby girl!" Leroy exclaimed.

She squeezed him tighter. "I missed you too, Dad."

Hiram held her out at arms-length and stared at her. "Leroy, look at her. Do you notice something different about our daughter?"

Leroy looked at her up and down. "Hmm...new makeup, new outfit style, new hair style...why, it's an all new Rachel! I love your new look, honey."

Hiram stroked her hair. "You've really gone through quite a transformation these past few months, cupcake. I can see a whole new mature, you. I love it too, sweetie."

She shrugged. "Well, it's New York. _Everyone _goes through a change there. You can thank Kurt, he gave me the makeover."

Leroy gasped and saw Kurt still striding toward them with his suitcase. "Oh my word, we left Kurt out of the picture."

All three of them approached him and gave him a hug. "So sorry for leaving you out, Kurt. We were just so caught up in the moment."

Hiram smiled at him. "Did you have a good flight, Kurt? It's so nice to see you."

Kurt bobbed his head politely. "Nice to see you too, sirs. Our flight was quite nice."

"Is you family still joining us for Thanksgiving?" Leroy asked.

Kurt grinned. "I anticipate it."

That answer made Leroy smile. "Great! Your Mom makes the _best _potato salad, and your Dad makes delicious cranberry stuffing."

"And _we're _in charge of making two turkeys." Hiram added. "One tofurkey for us and a regular turkey for everyone else."

Rachel heard her stomach growl and she patted her stomach. "Speaking of Thanksgiving food, can we go get something to eat? I only had a muffin and a smoothie from Starbucks before our flight and I'm _starving_."

They headed to Leroy's truck and took off to Panera.

Rachel leaned over and wrapped her arms around Hiram's neck. "I really missed the both of you."

He smiled. "We missed you too, cupcake. Sam's also been missing you, he stops by every now and then to see us."

"Does he know you're in, pumpkin?" Leroy asked.

She shook her head. "Nope, I never told him what day I was flying in. I wanted to surprise him at rehearsals. I decided to fly in early so I could make his show."

Kurt laughed. "He'll be sure surprised to see you."

Hiram turned to him. "Kurt, after lunch, would you like to come to our house or would you like us to drop you off at yours?"

"Mine, please." He replied. "I really think they miss me."

After they ate their lunch and dropped off Kurt, they drove back to the Berry household.

Rachel grabbed her suitcase and slowly stepped inside. "Oh, how I miss home. I actually wanted to come home after my first week."

Hiram sat in his favorite armchair and picked up the newspaper. "Why, honey?"

She leaned against the wall and sighed. "Well before Kurt and I moved into our apartment, everything was hell. My roommate liked to bring boys back to our room to have heavy make-outs with, _which _I was absent to and my dance teacher is harsh and _very _critical. But I had to find my way not to let them get to me."

Leroy grinned and pat her head. "That's our girl. So do you have any plans today?"

She shrugged. "Well today, I was hoping to spend tonight with you two and relax. Later, Kurt and I were gonna stop by McKinley to surprise everyone, meet the new Glee kids, and watch their final dress rehearsal. Tomorrow night, go watch the performance and spend the night at Sam and Puck's apartment. Thursday, be back here early to help set up for dinner, go with Sam to pick up his parents from the train station, be back here to help cook dinner and set up, and then it's dinner time. After that, I'm not sure."

"Seems you have everything planned out well." Hiram remarked from behind the newspaper.

Leroy chuckled. "You go on ahead up and take a nap if you want. We'll wake you up when Kurt gets here."

She grabbed her suitcase, she headed upstairs and flopped on her bed. Oh, how she missed clean fluffy sheets! She looked at her room and smiled at how much she had gone through to make it like that: the pale creamy walls, the stained glass lamp, the ivory vanity. The whole thought of it made her head spin and she quickly fell asleep.

_**DREAM SEQUENCE**_

_She dreamed that she was watching Sam's performance. Her seat was right smack in the middle row in the middle seat, but she still got a good view. The performance was phenomenal and outstanding, and_ _she couldn't wait to rush to him backstage to congratulate him._

_After the final song, everyone took their bows. When Sam came up, she was immediately on her feet, cheering the loudest._

_After the entire cast took their bows, Sam stepped forward. "I'd like to take a minute to thank my girl, who's out in the audience. I couldn't have done without her. Stand up, babe!"He pointed out in the audience._

_Rachel stood up again, but to her surprise, Sam didn't point to her, nor did anyone clap and cheer for her. He pointed to the front row, and someone stood up. Rachel couldn't see who this person was, she was more like a dark silhouetted figure. The person made her way onto the stage and waved like a pageant queen, the crowd around her going wild as ever. To Rachel's horror, Sam turned to the figure and kissed her affectionately, the same way he used to do with her. All Rachel could do was scream and wail loudly, but her scream was drowned out by the audience's cheers._

_**END OF DREAM**_

Rachel forced herself to wake up, shooting up in her bed and feeling a cold sweat run down her body. She put her hand to her forehead and felt warm.

What the heck was _that _about? Sam wasn't cheating on her...was he? He just talked to her last night saying how much he missed her and couldn't wait to see her. But who was the girl in the dream? She sighed, deciding that since she was back, she would treat him with _extra_ affection. She was hoping to anyway since she missed him so much. Every time she thought about him, it hurt. Staring at herself in the mirror, she hoped he would like her new look. Hopefully it made her more desirable to him than ever before.

"Rachel, honey!" Hiram called from downstairs. "Kurt's here!"

"Send him up!" She called back down.

A few seconds later, Kurt was at her door. "Hey there! Ready to see the love of your life again?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but can you help me get ready?"

He smiled and unzipped her suitcase. "Sure thing. What do you want to wear?"

She sat down on the floor with him. "Well, I _do _want to surprise Sam with my new look, but there's just so many outfits to choose from and I want to wear them all while I'm here. What I _don't _want to do is to waste a super-fabulous outfit for a few hours of just seeing him and then going home."

He nodded and started pulling out random pieces of clothing. "Honey, _all _your outfit pieces are fabulous. But I see what you mean, so we'll go with simple, but new. Save something ultra-fabulous for tomorrow night, Thanksgiving, any date nights, and your last night of seeing him. Let's see..."

He started rearranging articles of clothing to make makeshift outfits, but none of them seem to do. "Darling, all these make you seem confident but blend in in New York, but they make you look older and a bit _too _desirable here in Ohio. You'll be having an entourage of boys following you before you get to Sam. I should have thought about buying something even _more _simple. Let's try again."

After a few more minutes, he placed his outfit choices in the following categories: Casual wear, date night, special occasions. Finally, he paired her with a striped Milly Felicity Sweater, a black Juicy Couture skirt, yellow argyle socks, and black shiny Prada pumps **(a/n It's the outfit she wore when she took the selfie with Brody in the park)**

He spun her around and nodded approvingly. "There we go. Your outfit definitely says _coffee break_. It's elegant, mature, yet simple and a dash of Rachel Berry. _Very _casual. Now let's re-curl your hair, fix that smokey-eye eyeshadow, and then we're ready to go."

On the way out the door, she called to her Dads "Bye, Daddies! See you later!"

"Have fun, sweetie." Leroy said.

""If you bump into Sam, feel free to invite him over for dinner. We'll be making plenty of food."

"Did you text Finn and Artie that we were stopping by?" She asked Kurt as they got into his truck.

"Yup, they said to sneak in during _Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee _so we won't distract everyone."

She paused. "You _do _know that's right before _Beauty School Dropout, _right?"

He rolled his eyes. "I can handle it, don't worry."

When they got to school, they entered through the office to the doors of the auditorium. They could still hear the loud music and joyful noises coming from within, so they pressed their ears to the door to listen.

"What song are they on now?" She asked.

He pressed his ear even closer. "It's the burger joint scene. When the music starts for _Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee_, we'll head in."

The music started up, and the quickly but quietly darted in. The entire auditorium was dark except for the lighting on stage. Even though it was dark, they crouched down and hid in the very last row.

"What do we do now?" He whispered.

She looked around and spotted Artie and Finn's heads in the middle row. She pointed to them. "Stay low and let's head to the row behind Artie and Finn. But don't say anything, don't want to distract them."

They quietly made their way there and hid in the seats behind them, but poked their heads out so they could watch the rest of the production without being seen.

Rachel spotted Sam and almost fainted. _There_ was the love of her life, her knight in shining armor. She most definitely couldn't wait to have him close to her at the end.

Suddenly, they both heard Finn sniff. "Do you smell perfume? Artie, are you wearing perfume?"

"What are you, crazy? Why the heck would I be wearing perfume?" Artie replied clearly annoyed.

Rachel and Kurt cupped their hands to their mouths to quiet their giggles.

Suddenly, Artie sniffed. "Are you wearing cologne?"

"No." Finn remarked.

"Dang it!" Kurt whispered, a little _too _loudly.

Finn and Artie jumped in their seats. "Did you hear something? I think it came behind us."

"Not now, Finn, we have to focus on the production."

Rachel decided to use that opportunity to mess with them. She reached up and poked Finn in the head.

"Ouch!" He screamed and turned around. She saw his eyes widen and his jaw dropped so she leaped up and covered his mouth with her hand.

"Sh, don't scream! It's me and Kurt."

Artie turned around and grinned. "Hi, Rachel. Hi, Kurt."

Kurt poked his head up sheepishly. "Hi, Artie, Finn."

"They're doing quite well." Rachel remarked. "I like the girl playing Sandy."

Artie nodded. "That's Marley, she's new in the Glee Club. Her Mom is the new head lunch lady."

Finn pointed to the mocha-colored boy playing Putzie. "That's Jake Pukerman, Puck's half-brother. But he doesn't like to be acknowledged as that. And the guy playing Danny, he's Ryder, another new guy."

Artie pointed to the blonde girl playing Patty Simcox. "That's Kitty, the new head Cheerio."

Rachel giggled and pointed to Sam. "Sam's hair looks funny."

Finn laughed nervously. "Yeah, he _really _got into character."

"We'd better get back to focusing on the production, Finn. Rachel, Kurt, we'll chat with you during intermission, okay? During _We Go Together, _sneak out the same way you came in and we'll meet you there after I give the actors a break so you don't distract them."

She pouted. "So I can't see Sam until the end?"

He chuckled. "You and Kurt will cause so much excitement, we'll _never _get to act two on schedule."

Kurt nodded. "You go ahead and do your thing, we'll be quiet."

The rest of the scene went by quickly and smoothly. During the last song of act one, they both snuck out as quietly as they did when they came in.

"All right, all actors on stage, please!" They heard Artie call out. "You all did a wonderful job with act one. Let's take a thirty minute break so take a breather, go get a drink of water, have a snack, whatever. But remember, _don't _go out into the lobby in your costume."

Five seconds later, they joined Rachel and Kurt in the lobby and exchanged hugs. "We missed you guys!"

"Rachel, how's New York?" Finn questioned.

She shrugged and leaned against the wall. "More challenging than I expected. But I'm getting the hang of it."

"How about you, Kurt?" Artie inquired.

He grinned. "Just making ends meet like a _real _first-time New Yorker. Got our first apartment, good job, and I have my best friend right by my side for it." He added, snaking his arm lovingly around Rachel. "Couldn't be better."

Artie turned to Rachel. "So Rachel, how are you planning on surprising Sam? He's _always _thinking about you."

Finn suddenly turned a little stiff and hunched his shoulders. "Yeah...he is."

Rachel noticed and realized that he was thinking about that short time they both were a couple before Sam came along. She turned back to Artie. "I have no idea. I was too giddy just to get here, I haven't thought of anything."

He smiled and patted her hand. "Don't worry, I got something. Just go with it."

Finn eyed Rachel's outfit. "You look different."

Kurt puffed out his chest with pride. "All thanks to _me_. She simply _needed _a transformation."

Finn nodded and smiled. "It looks nice. I like it. What are you wearing for Thanksgiving?"

She shrugged. "I haven't thought of it yet. But I have a _lot _of new clothes to choose from."

Kurt squeezed her shoulder. "We'll think of something, don't you worry."

They chatted some more until Dottie poked her head out of the auditorium door. "Artie, thirty minutes is up."

He nodded and began rolling in. "Got it. Alert the actors, and tell the boys up in the sound booth to start the music."

Finn held the door open for them. "Come on, we gotta finish this last act."

The rest of the show went by pretty smoothly. During Blaine's performance of _Beauty School Dropout_, Rachel peeked over at Kurt to see how he was reacting. Surprisingly, he watched the performance with a straight face. She squeezed his hand remorsefully.

Finally, the rehearsal was over. Rachel and Kurt could definitely see most of the actors start to sweat and panting tiredly after they dropped their final pose.

Artie nodded approvingly. "Great job, everyone! Go backstage to take a breather and pat yourself down, and then all actors report on stage for final notesm but don't change out of your costumes yet. Thank you."

All the actors headed backstage, wiping their foreheads and muttering in relief. Rachel noticed Sam started tousling his hair.

Finn stood up and faced the people in the sound booth. "Guys, you can raise the lights now."

The lights came up, and five minutes later, all the actors made their way onto the stage. Only Sam was missing.

"Where's Sam?" Artie inquired.

"He's in the bathroom washing the grease out of his hair." Jake replied.

Artie rolled his eyes. "I told him he didn't have to use _real _hair grease, use hair gel! Blaine, I need you to get on his case with that."

Blaine nodded. "Got it."

Ten seconds later, Sam came running back on stage. "I'm here."

Artie picked up a few papers he had been writing on and looked at the actors. "Okay, here are my notes. First off, everyone, you all did a _wonderful_ job. These have been a hard few weeks, but we actually made it. Unique, I need some more sarcasm and meanness out of you. I know you have an inner diva, use it! Go to Kitty if you need some advice."

The girl named Kitty sneered.

"All right, next note. Marley, work on your choreography. You got the songs down, but you still seem to be stumbling a bit of the choreography like you're gonna pass out or something. Make sure you eat a snack before you go on and stay hydrated. Clear?"

The girl named Marley nodded sheepishly.

And lastly, Sam...I can't _express _how many times I've told you _not _to use actual grease. Greasers never used actual grease, they used wax or pomade or something. Blaine will accommodate you, you're gonna ruin your hair with grease and it takes you _forever _to wash it out."

Sam shrugged. "Just getting into character, Artie."

"Just tone it down a bit, okay?" Finn added.

Sam nodded.

"Now, before I dismiss you all," Artie began. "let's see if our guest audience members can give you some feedback."

Finn turned around and offered his hand to Rachel to help her up. She grasped Kurt's hand tightly and stood up slowly, yet nervously. As she eyed everyone on stage, there were a lot of mixed reactions: the new kids kept a straight face because they didn't know who they were, the Glee kids gasped and smiled brightly. Sam, however, had a different look. He seemed calm and collected, yet he had a hungry look in his eyes like he was about to leap off the stage.

Artie looked up at them. "Rachel, Kurt? Any feedback?"

She cleared her throat. "All in all, it was a great performance and I really think you all are ready for tomorrow night. I was literally blown away by all the musical numbers and cast. Great job!" She nudged Kurt. "Kurt...any feedback?"

She looked over at him at knew she was _definitely _looking at Blaine. "It was great." He said blandly.

Finn noticed the silent awkwardness and tension, so he jumped in. "Um...everyone, these are Glee Club's former legends Rachel Berry and Kurt Hummel."

The current Glee members minus Blaine clapped excitedly. Suddenly, Sam ran forward and almost jumped off the stage, but Artie stood his ground. "Grab him!"

Jake and Joe grabbed his arms before he leaped.

Artie rolled his eyes. "Okay, you all are dismissed. If _anyone _would like to chat with Rachel and Kurt, it will have to come _after _you all change out of your costumes, clean the dressing room, etc. Good day." Before he rolled away, he nodded to Rachel and Kurt. "Nice to see you again. I'll see you two tomorrow."

Sam continued to stare at Rachel while the boys struggled to drag him backstage.

"Go on, Sammy." She said reassuringly. "I'll be here when you're done, don't worry."

All the actors headed backstage to change, and Rachel breathed a small sigh of relief that Sam didn't leap off the stage because who _knows_ what would happen.

Slowly, the actors started making their way back from the dressing rooms. The old Glee members like Tina, Mike, Mercedes, Joe, Brittany, and Sugar greeted them excitedly while she waited. The ones called Unique and Marley ran excitedly over to Kurt and began chatting with him. Rachel saw Blaine emerge, took one look at Kurt, and headed out of the auditorium shaking his head.

Feeling sorry for him, she rushed over. "Blaine, wait!"

He stopped walking and gave her a small smile. Opening his arms, he embraced her. "Hi, Rachel. Nice to see you back."

She smiled, taking his hands in hers. "That was a _wonderful _performance. I positively adored your rendition of _Beauty School Dropout._" While she was talking, Blaine couldn't help but steal glances over at Kurt.

"He doesn't miss me, does he?"

She opened her mouth to defend him, but closed it and sighed defeated. "He does, Blaine, I'm sure of it. He may not act like it or walk around with a straight face, but deep down he misses you."

He shook his head sadly. "Thanks for trying to be honest, but I know, Rachel. I'll see you tomorrow night, okay?"

She nodded and hugged him tightly. "Will do. Have a good night, Blaine."

After he left, she joined Kurt who had just finished his conversation with Marley and Unique. "How are the newbies?"

He shrugged. "Eager, yet ambitious." He turned to her and looked at her seriously in the eye. "I saw you talking to Blaine." He muttered.

She sighed frustrated. "Kurt, he's my friend too. You should at least _acknowledge _him, be the better person."

He leaned his head on her shoulder. "Honey, I'm not easily one to forgive and forget. This is just really awkward for me. I'll be fine though. Am I driving you home or is Sam?"

"I don't know." She replied. "Do you want to just wait around while I ask?"

He nodded. "Sure. You better get ready to meet up with him." He took his head off her shoulder and looked around, surprised to see it empty. "I think everyone's gone. Where's Sam?"

As if on cue, he emerged from backstage, hair still wet and dressed in normal clothes.

Rachel squealed. "Sammy!"

He leaped off stage and ran to them. The _very _first thing he did was gather her in his arms, pick her up, and spun her around while she giggled. When he put her down, they silently embraced. She inhaled his scent, missing it so _badly_. No one could beat his warm, strong embrace.

"I missed you _so _much. Beyond so much, you don't even know." He whispered.

She nuzzled her her head against his chest. "Me too."

They stayed like that for a few minutes until Kurt cleared his throat.

Sam looked up at him and grinned. "Heya, Kurt. Nice to see you again!"

Kurt nodded. "Same to you, Sam. Will you be escorting her home or shall I?"

Sam looked at Rachel. "Do you want me to drive you home?"

She nodded excitedly. "Of course! Oh, and my Dads were hoping you'd stay for dinner."

He chuckled and stood back to look at her. "My god, look at _you_! I hardly recognized you at first. New York sure has changed you."

Kurt smiled. "She _needed _a makeover, believe me."

Rachel grabbed Sam's hand. "I'm still the same girl you remember, just a _tiny _bit mature."

Sam eyed her outfit again. "You look sexy. But I love it." He then pretended to pout. "Why didn't you tell me what day you were flying in? Did you just come today?"

She shrugged. "Yup, we arrived today. And I didn't tell you because I wanted to surprise you and see your show." She put her finger to his lips. "Now don't you pout, _I _should be the one pouting."

He tilted his head. "Oh? Why so?"

She sighed exasperated. "We haven't seen each other in _five _months. When we finally see each other again, you spin me and hold me but don't _kiss _me?"

He cupped her face and kissed her gently but firmly, making up for all that time apart. He missed her sweet kisses, especially since she always wore fruity lip gloss. She didn't mind him wearing non-flavor chapstick though. She just admired how it made his lips super soft.

Kurt cleared his throat again. "As much as I _love _seeing your first reunion, I feel really awkward standing here. Shall we walk to our vehicles so that the night staff may close up?"

Sam laughed and put his arm around Rachel. "So sorry about that, Kurt. Come on, let's go."

As they were leaving, Rachel and Kurt told him about their fun adventures in New York. Suddenly Kurt stopped in his tracks.

"Before we leave, I really have to use the bathroom real quick. Don't leave without me, please."

Rachel nodded. "We won't, go ahead."

When he went into the bathroom, Sam cornered her up against the wall. "You look _really _sexy in that new outfit."

She giggled. "Why thank you. You should...and you _will..._see my other outfits I brought."

He leaned in closer to her ear. "I sure can't wait." He said seductively.

They leaned in close about to kiss again when suddenly a shrill but cheerful voice rang out from the end of the hallway. "Sam!"

They both looked up and saw a plump but gleeful girl striding toward them. "There you are! I was hoping I'd catch you after your rehearsal."

Rachel looked back and forth between Sam and the girl. "Sam...who is this?"

Sam pushed himself off the wall and grinned. "Rachel, this is Penny. Penny, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Rachel."

**Phew, I'm DONE with this chapter. Believe me, I've been work on it from days on end. Enjoy my cliffhanger! Bye!**


	5. Penny For Your Thoughts

**Can someone PLEASE tell me how to work the filter on the Glee Fanfiction page? I'm trying to find stories with two people and frankly, these multi-character inclusions are just plain annoying. I've been trying to find Blainchel stories using the "Blaine/Rachel" filter but they are literally ALL hidden beneath KLAINE stories. I don't wanna read Klaine, I wanna read Blainchel! And don't get me started on hunting for Samchel stories, I seriously can't find a SINGLE one. I mean, I can, but they are all hidden underneath Finchel, Klaine, Fabrerry...it's really starting to push my buttons. So if anyone can graciously tell me how to work the filters, let me know. And don't go harassing my inbox of review box with "Why don't you wanna read Klaine or Finchel?". I just don't.**

**Now ANDELE with this chapter!**

**This is so fun picking out Rachel's outfits. I had to do a bit of research, but I found a site that tells me the EXACT names of the articles of clothing she wears with her outfits. The only issue I have with it is that she wears _so _many amazing outfits, I have trouble picking out which outfit she should wear for what occasion. I sure wish I had them...**

"Rachel, this is Penny. Penny, this is my girlfriend, Rachel."

Rachel took a look at Penny and suddenly felt a sense of uneasiness. Sure, she looked pretty and non-threatening in her own way, but there was _something _about her that didn't feel right. Who was she, and how did she know Sam? "Who's Penny?"

Sam turned to her. "She's Nurse Gail's assistant. She's in the nursing program at the community college, and this is part of her volunteer work."

She turned to Penny and politely stuck out her hand while giving her a small smile. "Hi, Penny. I'm Rachel, Sam's girlfriend."

Penny continued to stare at her with what seemed like a painfully fake smile. "This is your girlfriend?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, the one I was telling you about. From New York. Future Broadway star, former Glee Club legend, etc. etc..."

Penny blinked a few times and shook Rachel's hand, her smile never dropping. "It's nice to meet you too, Rachel. Sam didn't know you were flying in today." She turned to Sam and crossed her arms. "I was hoping to catch you after your rehearsal. How did it go?"

He shrugged. "Went well. We got everything down, I think. I'm _really _excited for tomorrow night, especially since my girl's here."

"And I didn't tell him because I wanted to stop by rehearsal and surprise him." Rachel added quickly.

Penny's smile tightened, and Rachel noticed that she never took her eyes off Sam. "I'm _uber _excited to see the show tomorrow, Sam. Grease is my absolute favorite musical!"

Rachel eyed her suspiciously. "Oh, really? What's your favorite song from the musical?"

She knew she caught her when her smile faltered a bit, but she quickly recovered. "All of them! And my favorite character is Fonzie."

Sam stared at her confused. "Um...there's no one in the show named Fonzie. I think you're confused with _Happy Days_."

Penny fake-gasped and laughed. "Oh, really? Oh, I'm so silly. Silly silly me!"

Rachel giggled. "Looks like you'll have to get educated tomorrow night when you see the show."

Penny's smile suddenly turned tense. "Yes...yes, I will. Well, bye Sam. I'll see you tomorrow at the show." She turned her heel and walked away.

Rachel looked up at Sam. She wanted to tell him that there just wasn't something right about Penny, but that would make her seem petty considering they just met. "You're Penny seems to like you, I can tell. She _definitely _doesn't like me."

He looked town at her and tapped her nose. "Well _I _love _you._ Don't worry about her, she's just a supporting character."

She pouted. "That's good. I would _hate _to lose you to a nurse's assistant.

He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "_You _would look even sexier as a nurse."

She smiled seductively. "A nurse? I'm sure I can make that happen."

The door to the boys' bathroom opened and Kurt came out brushing his hands on his shirt. "Ick, I forgot how much I hated public school soap. Rachel, remind me that we need to go to the mall and stop by Bath and Body Works so I can get some lotion while we're in town."

"What are you guys doing tomorrow before the show?" Sam asked.

"My Dad is taking me and Kurt to a bridal show tomorrow." She replied.

Kurt clapped his hands and squealed excitedly while jumping up and down. "I so can't wait to enter the raffles!"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Kurt, you know that you have to be _engaged _to win those prizes. And what could you _possibly_ do with any of those?"

Kurt crossed his arms and stamped his foot. "Rachel, first off we're old enough to. Second, I'll only enter the raffles that have simple non-wedding prizes like Bed Bath and Beyond bedsheets, and kitchenware." He looked at his watch. "Now can we please make sure we all get to our vehicles safely?"

Sam laughed. "Sure. Where'd you park?"

"I parked in the visitor's parking section."

He whistled. "That's a bit of a long walk. Why don't you ride with us and I'll drop you off at your truck?"

Kurt stepped over to him and engulfed him in a hug. "Sam Evans, you are the _kindest _male human being at the moment. I am super glad Rachel has you."

They began walking outside of the school. The minute the cold wind hit Rachel, she grabbed her sides and shivered. Sam stared at her concerned, took off his jacket and draped it around her.

Kurt blushed sheepishly. "Maybe it was a bad idea to pick out a skirt. I should have checked the weather, I'm sorry."

Rachel shook her head. "No, no, it's quite fine. It happens."

After they dropped Kurt off at his truck, the ride home was quiet but heart-warming. Sam held her hand the whole time, and it made her remember how much she _really _missed him.

He held her hand up to his lips and kissed hit gently. "Did I ever tell you how much I missed you?"

She pursed her lips. "I think I should hear it one more time just to be sure, Sammy."

He turned to her and smiled. "I missed you so much."

She sighed and leaned back in her seat. "It feels so great to be home. Everything looks so...simple compared to the hustle and bustle of New York."

He nodded. "I can tell. You really could use some relaxation. What are your plans for while you're here?"

She thought for a second and combed her fingers through her hair. "Well let's see...tonight, I was hoping you'd have dinner with me and my Dads."

"I'd be delighted." He replied, putting his hand on her knee.

"Tomorrow, Kurt and I are going to the wedding show. Then we're going to see your show and..." She lowered her voice all sexy and rubbed his shoulder. "maybe spend the night with you in your apartment."

He gulped and licked his lips. "I'd _really _like that. Are we still on for Thanksgiving?"

She nodded. "Yup. My Dads are so excited to have your family, and Kurt and Finn's family with us for dinner."

He pouted. "It's gonna be hard to behave with Finn there. I bet he'll also have his eyes on you."

She giggled and kissed his shoulder. "Honey, I promise you'll have me all to yourself, don't you worry."

He looked at her again and stared at her outfit. "What will you be wearing?"

She reached over and tweaked his nose. "You're just gonna have to wait and see."

He sighed and patted her knee. "Fine. I can't wait. What else are you gonna do while you're here?"

She shrugged. "I have no idea. I want to spend time with you but I also want to spend time with my Dads."

He grabbed her hand again and squeezed it tightly. "I'm totally fine with whatever you're up for. For now, let's just enjoy dinner, okay?"

She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Okay." However, when she said that, she had a certain uneasiness in her stomach as she pictured Penny's face smiling up at him.

**And boom goes the chapter. Enjoy!**


	6. Right Where You Belong

_**The Next Night**_

Rachel and Kurt arrived back at school all dressed up and ready to see the show. This time, she was dressed in a white Theyskens Jipsi Jacket, black shorts, and Marc Jacobs pumps **(A/N the outfit she wore when she and Finn were walking in Central Park in the episode "The Break-Up")**

"What time is it?" She asked Kurt.

He looked at his watch. "Seven o' clock. House opens in half an hour."

She nodded and straightened her jacket. "Good, that's good. What are you going to do if you come across Blaine?"

His face suddenly turned pale. "I don't know."

She took his hands. "Kurt, at least you could wish him luck. You don't have to say anything else, just a simple hi and break a leg and that's it."

Kurt looked down and away. "I don't know." He said again.

She sighed and rubbed his wrists. "At least wish everyone else luck. The new Glee kids, the other ones...for me?"

After a few seconds, he smiled and nodded. "All right, for you."

They joined hands again and headed into the school. Once inside, they entered the door that led them backstage.

Everyone was hustling around, fussing about something. Tina was running around fussing about costumes, Ryder was hunting around for Marley, Kitty was strutting around calling everyone amateurs, and Finn and Artie were chatting with the tech people.

"Finn! Artie!"

They both looked up and instantly smiled. "Hey, you made it!"

Rachel approached them and hugged them both. "Yeah, we wanted to come backstage and wish everyone luck before the show."

Artie looked around worried. "Good luck with that. Everyone's stressed and jittery right now."

"Think you can lend a quick helping hand?" Finn asked quickly.

She shrugged. "I can try. Where do I start?"

At that moment, Tina came in fuming. "Where is Unique's Pink Lady jacket! I can't find it anywhere!"

Rachel looked around and saw it sitting on a nearby crate. "I think that's it."

Tina pulled it up and smiled. "Yup, that's the one."

Unique came strutting out of the dressing room and snatched it from her. "Thank you!" She examined her shiny pink nails and gasped affronted. "Oh...hell..._naw_. Unique's nail polish is chipped! She will certainly _not _go on looking like this, no she will _not_." She stomped away back to the dressing room, her bright pink pumps clicking behind her.

Rachel giggled and brushed off her hands. "Need anymore help?"

She shook her head, her curly pigtails waving back and forth. "Nope, I think we're good. But it's nice to see you, Rachel! How's New York?"

Rachel engulfed her in a hug. "Nice to see you, too. New York's pretty great so far, but I'm still getting the hang of it. Kurt and I just came back here to wish you all luck, we really missed you."

Tina looked over Rachel's shoulder at Kurt and suddenly frowned. "Uh oh."

"Whatever's the matter, Tina?" Rachel asked worriedly. "Is something wrong?"

"Blaine's still been a bit...distraught ever since the breakup. You should have seen his audition...it was hard to watch. I've never seen him so depressed before.

Rachel nodded understandingly. "Don't worry, there will be minimal interaction between them. I know what's up, I wouldn't want to cause a rift that would distract the show. I'm sure you all will do a splendid job tonight."

Tina grinned and hurried off after Unique. "Enjoy the show!" She called over her shoulder.

Rachel walked over to Kurt and took his hand. "Come on, it's almost showtime. Let's go wish everyone luck and get to our seats."

As they both made their way around backstage, they wished every cast member who they passed good luck. The old Glee members thanked them with hugs and the new kids just sheepishly thanked them for coming.

Finally, she spotted Sam in his costume. He was holding a hand-held mirror while coming his hair back the way greasers usually do. She stifled a laugh as she approached him from behind. "They say a hickey from Kenickie is like a hallmark card."

He turned around and gasped in surprise. "When you only care enough to send the best." He swooped down and kissed her softly. "Came to wish us luck?"

She pulled out a rose that she was hiding behind her back and smiled. "You bet I did. And to give you this."

He took the rose and kissed her again. "You're so amazingly sweet." He eyed her up and down and admired her brand new outfit. It made her look for adult and mature than how she used to look in high school. In fact, it made her look very sexy. "You look even _sexier _tonight. You wouldn't happen to be trying to seduce me now, are you?" He said with mock annoyance like a father chastising his child."

She touched his hair and giggled. "You look funny. And you wish."

He sighed and touched his hair. "I don't know what the heck Blaine did with my hair. We both thought it would make it look slick-back like his but somehow, it just made my hair frizzy and weird."

She took his hand and led him to the mirror. "Come here, let me help you or else I won't be able to watch the show without laughing. Give me the gel."

He handed it to her and she started working her hands in his hair. He closed his eyes and savored how good and relaxing it felt. Soon, his hair was sleek and gelled back to perfection.

"Done!" She exclaimed and stood back to admire her work. "_Now _you look like a greaser...or maybe Leonardo DiCaprio via _Titanic_."

He looked at himself in the mirror and smiled. Then he took her hand and brought him closer to her. "With you, I _do _feel like the king of the world."

They leaned in to kiss again but a shrill voice rang out behind them. "Hey, a hickey from Kenickie is like a hallmark card."

They both turned around and saw Penny holding a bouquet of roses. "Surprise! I did a little research." However, she spotted Rachel and her outfit and her smile tensed. "Ah, Rachel, you're here too."

"Penny, what are you doing back here?" Sam asked.

She smiled again and stepped forward. "I came to wish you luck and give you these." She said, handing him the roses.

Rachel laughed. "Um, Penny...you give the actors flowers _after _the show."

Penny blinked a few times and Rachel could definitely tell she was hiding her irritation. "Really? Huh...go figure. I don't really go to these things so I didn't know."

Sam stared at the flowers. "Penny, I appreciate the flowers and you coming to support me, but we _really _aren't allowed to have visitors backstage."

Penny frowned and pointed at Rachel accusingly. "But _she's _back here!"

Rachel squeezed Sam's hand. "I volunteered to help out backstage. They really needed some extra helping hands and asked me, so I'm allowed to be back here." She immediately knew Penny felt threatened but she didn't want to cause a commotion. Still, Penny really needed to back off.

Penny pursed her lips. "Fine then. I'll...go to my seat then. Break a leg."

After she left, Rachel pressed herself against Sam. "She _really_ doesn't like me. She's definitely threatened by me."

Sam shook his head and rubbed her shoulders. "Doesn't matter. You're here, that's all that matters." He said soothingly while placing a kiss on her head.'

Artie rolled up to them. "Hey there, house is open. Showtime in thirty minutes."

She checked her watch. "Ooh, Kurt and I better get to our seats. It's almost time for you to go on."

He nodded. "All right, give me a kiss for luck?" He tapped his cheek, but she grabbed his chin and brought her lips to his. He licked his lips and smiled. "Good enough, now get to your seats."

She grinned and ran off to look for Kurt. For some reason, she seriously couldn't find him _anywhere_, so she started asking the cast. "Have you seen Kurt? Has anyone seen Kurt?"

"I think I saw him and Blaine in the hallway." Ryder pointed out.

She nodded and smiled. "Thanks. Break a leg tonight!" After he walked away, she ran into the hallway.

There, she saw both Blaine and Kurt facing each other, both with sullen looks on their faces.

"Look, just let me explain-" Blaine began.

"What are you gonna tell me?" Kurt cut him off. "That is wasn't serious? That you only made out? That you didn't care about him?"

Blaine sighed. "I_ didn't_ care about him-"

Kurt interrupted again. "Do you think any of that matters to me? Relationships are all about trust." He paused before continuing. "And I just don't trust you anymore."

Blaine's eyes widened and Rachel could definitely still see the hurt in his eyes. She decided to pull Kurt away and give them some space. "Kurt, there you are! Come on, we need to get to our seats."

Kurt kept his head down as he walked past her down the hallway.

She heard a sniffle behind her, so she turned around and hugged Blaine. "Break a leg tonight."

"I don't want to perform tonight if Kurt hates me that much." Blaine whimpered.

She pulled back and looked at him straight in the eye. "Hey, you don't have to do this for him. If you can't do it for him, then do it for everyone else: the cast, the crew, Finn, Artie...and me. Do it for me."

He nodded and wiped his eyes. "You better go to your seats now."

She patted his hand and hurried back to Kurt who was also looking quite sorrowful.

"I don't wanna stay and watch. I'm going home."

She grabbed his hand tightly. "And leave me here to watch by myself? Kurt, you _promised _you'd stay and watch for me. Don't worry about what happened, let's just enjoy the show tonight. Please?"

They continued to keep walking until they got to the auditorium. Everyone started slowly filing in and taking their seats.

Rachel felt someone harshly bumped past her shoulder. It was Penny, who shot her an irritated look.

Kurt noticed and he raised an eyebrow. "Know her?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "She obviously likes Sam and feels threatened now that I'm here."

Kurt squeezed her shoulder. "In that case, I'm staying. And look..." He pointed into the auditorium. "there's Mercedes, Mike and Puck. Let's go sit with them."

They walked down the aisle to their seats which where in the middle of the fourth row. It wasn't fourth row, but at least the cast on stage would be able to see them and they'd be able to watch the performance perfectly without having to crane their necks.

Puck spotted them and patted the seat next to him. As Rachel slid in, he eyed her outfit and wolf-whistled. "Wow, Sam wasn't kidding! New York's changed my hot Jewish-American princess, now she looks mature and _definitely _sexy." He ended his last statement with a purr.

Rachel pushed him playfully and reached around to hug Mercedes who gave her a wink. "I was _hoping _you'd give up those animal sweaters and knee high socks sooner or later. Girl, you look great!"

Quinn stepped around and gave her a hug. "You look really nice, Rachel, _totally _different from the girl I knew in high school."

Rachel beamed. "Thanks, Quinn! You're looking well yourself."

Puck put his arm around both of them. "You look great, and you look great. And I know that _I _look great, so can we take our seats now that we have it covered?"

When they sat down, Rachel took a glance at Kurt who was chatting animatedly with Mercedes about working for _Vogue_.

Puck turned to her and put his arm around her again. "So, babe, tell me about your _marvelous _life-transforming new life in New York. Sam raves about you enough, but I'm sure you have some personal stories to tell while we wait for the show to start. How's New York treating you?"

She shrugged. "It was hard at first, but I'm starting to get used to it. Not everyone's nice but hey, it's New York." She poked his chest. "What about _you_? What's it like being Sam's roomie?"

He smirked. "Pretty interesting. We do normal guy stuff, have guy conversations, yada yada. What's _really _interesting is when he talks about _you_."

She gulped. "Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah, he talks about you _all _the time. He even fantasizes about you. Wanna know how I know?" He leaned in closer to her and whispered, "Sometimes I'll go into the bathroom after he showers, and there's _no _steam in there. You know what _that _means, dun dun dun!"

She stared at him and shuddered at the thought of Sam thinking about her while taking a cold shower. Just the thought of him bare naked, soap running down his toned abs was enough to make her start feeling light-headed.

Puck noticed and burst out laughing. "Ah, I see _you're _also fantasizing yourself. Oh boy, I can't wait to hear what's gonna go down tonight back at our apartment."

Rachel felt herself turning red. "Shut up, Noah."

The lights dimmed and Artie and Finn came up to the front of the stage. "Good evening, everyone, and welcome to tonight's performance of _Grease_. Our cast and crew have been working tremendously hard these past few months and have been doing a fantastic job and are really excited to go on tonight."

Finn gave a shy smile as he took out a notecard out of his pocket and nervously read off it. "Please no flash photography, food or drinks in the theatre. We will have a fifteen minute intermission after act one, where refreshments will me served in the lobby. Thank you, and enjoy the show."

The whole show was actually quite _phenomenal_. The choreography was flawless, the actors were quite convincing, and the whole audience just _loved_ it. The only thing Rachel and Kurt quite noticed was Blaine faltering a bit on his rendition of _Beauty School Dropout_ when he looked out into the audience and apparently saw Kurt. He seemed to lose focus for just a split second, but caught up just as quickly.

After the final song and curtain call, _everyone _was on their feet. It reminded Rachel of the dream she had, which suddenly made her feel a bit uneasy. She looked around as she clapped along, hoping that it wouldn't repeat itself.

After the final bows, the cast and crew presented Artie and Finn with bouquets of roses as thanks for being great directors. Suddenly, Sam stepped up to the front of the stage, surprising everyone.

"Everyone, before we close out tonight, I just wanted to say a little something. The cast and crew, you all did a great job tonight, well done. Finn, Artie, you guys are absolutely _amazing _at directing this production, you deserve more credit. However, _I _personally wouldn't have been able to do my part of this production without a little encouragement from a special someone. I'd like to give a big shout-out to my lovely girl in the audience, Rachel Berry!"

Rachel felt like her heart had stopped. Her dream _was _coming true, only Sam was acknowledging _her_! Everyone in the audience turned to her and was clapping and cheering excitedly. She couldn't focus, though. Her mind was all over the place and she began to feel a bit overwhelmed. It wasn't until Puck whacked her on the back that she began to gain focus again.

"Rachel, get up there! Sam's calling for you!"

She shook her head and looked at the stage. Just like he said, Sam staring right at her and made a beckoning gesture. She weaved her way out of the row and down the aisle as the applause got bigger and louder. When she got on stage, Sam dipped her and kissed her hard. She could just _feel _the absolute passion in the kiss and everything that had happened in the past few days that worried her, from Penny to Brody, just melted away.

After the show, everyone went out to dinner at Breadstix to celebrate. Following that, Sam, Rachel and Puck drove back to their apartment.

"Ah, home, sweet home." Puck sighed as he turned the key and opened the door. "It's been a long day."

"It sure has." Sam replied while leading Rachel inside. "Come on in, babe, and make yourself comfortable."

Rachel emerged inside and looked around, admiring the simplicity of the room. There wasn't much furniture, just the basic necessities like a couch, a TV, a coffee table, a few lamps, and some pictures of the wall. The kitchen had nothing in it and she marveled at how they were able to keep it nice, clean, and simple.

"Everything's so...tidy!" She exclaimed.

Sam shrugged. "It's not much, but it's home for now. You should see Puck's room, though, it's quite frightening."

Puck rolled his eyes. "Hey, I do a lot for a living. I don't have time to nicely fold and put away my clothes. That's why I have _you _to do my laundry." He checked his watch and raised an eyebrow. "Wow, it's getting late. Well, I'm turning in, bit holiday tomorrow. Now you two behave yourselves." He rapped the wall with his knuckles. "These walls aren't soundproof, you know."

Rachel pouted and heaved one of the couch pillows at him. "Noah Puckerman, you dirty pervert!"

Puck dodged the pillow, smirked, and headed to his room singing _Super freak_. "She's a super freak-super freak!"

Sam stretched out on the couch and put his arm around her. "So what do you want to do? We could watch some TV, watch a movie...play some video games. How's New York, by the way?"

_**Meanwhile**_

Penny opened the door to her house and stepped inside, thankful that her parents were away on a cruise. She began to tip-toe up the steps to her room when suddenly, the living room lamp flickered on, revealing her fourteen year old brother, Anthony.

"You're late!" He chided.

She sighed. "Anthony, get over yourself. You're old enough to stay home alone and Mom and Dad knew I was going out. Why are you still awake?"

He shrugged. "I couldn't sleep so I stayed up and watched cartoons until you got home. What are we doing tomorrow for Thanksgiving?"

"How the heck should I know?" She asked, hanging her jacket on a kitchen chair. "I'm going out again."

Antony jumped off the chair and ran to her. "You can't leave me alone again, especially on Thanksgiving!"

She pat his head. "Don't worry, squirt, you're coming with me. We got invited to help out at the homeless shelter."

"By who?"

"Sam Evans." She replied beaming.

Anthony made a popping noise with his mouth. "The football player? I'd watch out if I were you, word on the street says that his college girlfriend is back in town."

Penny ran her fingers through her hair. "All in good time, all in good time. Soon, she'll be back in New York, their relationship will deteriorate and _I'll _be there to comfort him."

He shook his head. "Why would you want him anyway? You're older than him. You're a cougar!"

She rolled her eyes. "Why shouldn't I get my kicks? And he's nineteen, I'm twenty, not much of a difference. And it's not _illegal_. You freshmen don't know _anything_. Now get up to bed."

He sighed and marched up the stairs. "You shouldn't be messing with a happy couple. You're gonna be a home-wrecker."

She pointed up the stairs sternly. "Not another word, march!"

_**Back at the Apartment**_

Rachel and Sam were furiously making out on his bed. It started with a simple kiss on the couch, to getting a bit more passionate and finally frantic. Not only did they miss each other completely, but they missed the _other _sides of each other. They missed kissing, touching, caressing...the things they couldn't do when others were watching.

She slowly started to unbutton his shirt as he rubbed his cheek on her warm shoulder.

"God, I missed this." He whispered.

After his shirt was unbuttoned, she threw it onto the floor and pushed him back on the bed while grinning mischievously. "Oh, it's only just begun."

**(Wipes forehead) Phew, chapter done! It's like a workout for me.**

**Next chapter is the Thanksgiving chapter. There will be a tiny bit tension between Finn and Sam. After that, a Sam/Penny chapter, Sam will visit Rachel in New York, and more tension. **

**Enjoy!**


	7. Helping Hand

**This story is so much fun to write. **

**Okay, I lied. This chapter will deal with Sam and Penny at the homeless shelter while Rachel and her Dads set up for their Thanksgiving dinner. I know you all were probably looking forward to it, I'm sorry!**

Penny pulled into the parking lot of the Findlay Hope House for the Homeless with Anthony and hopped out of the car.

"Are we gonna get some food here?" Anthony complained.

She rolled her eyes. "Anthony, chill out. I'm _sure _we'll get some food here, but if you're still hungry, I promise to make your favorite apple dumplings when we get home. But you _have _to behave yourself."

Anthony pouted and stuck out his tongue. "Penny, I'm fourteen, not eight."

When they got inside, they were amazed at how crowded it was in there. So many homeless people decked out in numerous layers of jackets, gloves, hats, and scarves scattered around the room waiting for the food to be served. Penny instantly felt a wave of sadness as she looked around and saw all the sad, non-privileged people. Suddenly, she spotted Sam from across the room who was walking toward them with two aprons and a wide grin.

"Hey, so great of you to come!" He said, handing out the aprons.

Penny took hers shyly. "Thanks. This is my brother Anthony, he's a freshman at McKinley."

Sam looked down at him and stuck out his hand. "Hey, Sam Evans."

Anthony shook his hand. "You're on the football team. And you have a girlfriend in town." He added that last sentence shooting a glare at Penny.

Sam just nodded and clapped his hands together. "You got that right. Well today, our jobs are just gonna be serving the food. We have people that will be going around like waiters, making sure everyone's enjoying the food and have everything they need, we just have to put the food on their plates. Anthony, since you're a little smaller, you will be one of the waiters."

"Will we get some too?" Anthony asked, but received a sharp nudge of the elbow from Penny.

Sam chuckled. "Sure, we've made _more _ than enough for everyone, so feel free to help yourself to a plate when you get a free moment."

Penny looked around. "So...uh...is Rachel here?"

He shook his head. "Nope, she's at home helping her Dads set up for dinner tonight. It's just me, my parents, and my siblings."

She smiled and rubbed her hands together. "Well that's so nice of her! And it'll just be us three the whole night...serving food to the homeless...what a great way to spend Thanksgiving!"

Sam rubbed his neck. "Well...actually, my parents and I are only staying for about two hours. Then we're leaving to get ready for dinner at Rachel's house."

Her smile fell. "Wait...so...you were just looking for volunteers?"

He grinned and nodded excitedly. "You bet! The shelter always needs more volunteers, we were actually a bit short last year. But I'm _really _glad you came out to contribute your help to the shelter." He looked at his watch. "Oh, get your aprons on. They're about to bring out the food in just a few minutes, let me just go check on my parents."

After he walked away, Penny slumped her shoulders disappointed. First, Sam didn't really want _her _to be there, he was just looking for volunteers, and she wouldn't get to spend Thanksgiving with him. She looked down at Anthony. "Come on, let's go home."

He shook his head. "No way, this will be _much _more fun than spending it at home with just you. And hey, spend whatever time you got with him."

The rest of the night seemed to go by pretty smoothly. The food was brought out, the shelter residents got their plates ready, and it was time to get to work. Sam's Mom stood at the beginning of the line handing out plates, napkins, cups, and utensils with a few other volunteers; his Dad stood with the male volunteers that were grilling, so they were the ones putting meat on everyone's plates. Sam stood next to Penny serving mashed potatoes, stuffing, and macaroni and cheese while she served salad, bread rolls, and cranberry sauce. They made light conversation while they served, and all the while, Penny tried to steer it somewhere.

"So what are your plans for college?" She asked.

"Not sure." He replied simply. "I've been working my butt off at football hoping a recruiter will want me or offer me a scholarship. My family and I have been having money troubles since who knows when, so college might be a problem. If all else fails, my backup plan is to become a model."

"What does Rachel think of that?"

He shrugged. "She's totally okay with whatever I choose. Sure, it'll be even _harder _especially if we'll be even further apart, but if we can survive this year then we can survive more."

Penny pouted and silently continued to serve. That surely was _not _the answer she wanted to hear. She concluded that she would have to try _harder _when Rachel went back to New York.

"What about you?" He asked. "What made you choose the nursing program?"

She gave him a small smile. "My Grandma. She was one of the best nurses' at her hospital in Michigan. I learned a lot from her growing up, she even gave me my first doctor's kit when I was three."

He nodded approvingly. "Is she still alive?"

She shook her head. "She died about five years ago from pancreatic cancer that was too serious. After that, I was dead-set on becoming a nurse, no go-backs. I want to help sick people of all ages no matter what."

During the rest of the time serving, she noticed that he kept checking his watch frantically. She checked her watch too. Four o'clock, four-thirty...

After a while, the line started to die down. She turned to him and gently pushed his wrist down. "Sam, _relax_. Look, the line's starting to die down."

Sam's Mom approached them and handed them two plates. "Here honey, go grab a bite to eat. Dad and I will take care of the second servings."

He took his plate and shrugged. "Uh, sure I guess." He looked around and pointed to an empty spot by the door. "There's an empty spot, help yourself."

They gathered their food and sat down in the empty spot. Penny scanned the room and saw Anthony walking around refilling everyone's cups and having friendly conversations.

"My brother is so thoughtful." She sighed. "He's _always _friendly with other people." She glanced at Sam, hoping that he was also staring back impressed. Sam, however, was busying himself with whatever was on his plate.

"So what kind of music do you listen to?" He asked with a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

She stared at him before answering, hoping _some _part of him gave off the impression of whatever music he listened to. He was probably one of those bad boys who remixed music on his free time, so she took a shot. "Oh you know...Skrillex, Daft Punk..."

Sam made a face. "Ewww, I can't stand Skrillex. That's not music, that's _noise_."

Penny scoffed. "Ok, so what kind of music do _you _listen to?"

He grinned. "_Real _music, wide variety range. But I _mostly _like country music since I grew up in Tennessee."

She raised her eyebrows and ate another spoonful of sweet potatoes. "Country boy, _very _nice! I think you would look _very _stunning in plaid farmer boy shirts."

He chuckled. "I actually have a fine collection of them. They really add to my _farmer boy _roots." He eyed her outfit. "As well as your _wear a dress everyday to school _look."

She pushed him playfully. "Hey, I _like _this look. I don't have to worry about anyone pulling my pants or skirt down."

He rolled his eyes. "Oh please, that age-old trick is _done_. No one goes around pants-ing anymore, that's so middle school."

Suddenly, Sam's dad approached them and tapped his shoulder. "Sam, it's 5:30. We have to go back to the hotel now if we want to be at Rachel's at 6:30."

Penn pouted and sat up straighter. "Oh, you're leaving so soon? Come on, you can stay for another thirty minutes, look how happy everyone is!"

Sam's dad gave her a small smile. "We'd love to but we _really _have to get going. And not to worry, we have people covering the rest of our shifts, so you don't have to worry about being by yourself." He turned to Sam. "I'm gonna go gather Stevie and Stacey."

Sam stood up and brushed off his apron. "Well this has been a nice chat. Thanks again for coming to help out."

Penny stood up with him and grabbed his hand. "Oh, come on, you can stay a little while longer!"

He shook his head. "Sorry, gotta go handsome myself up for my girl."

She sighed and pouted while crossing her arms. "Oh _boo, _Rachel is always stealing you from me. She's a lucky girl to have you."

He smiled and nodded. "And _I'm _lucky to have _her_. I'll see you in school, Penny."

She followed him to where his parents were gathered, and bid them good-bye. As he was leaving, she smiled knowing that when Rachel went back to New York, she would work her way into Sam's life. Be more involved, infiltrate the family, all that jazz. But she had to do it _discreetly _without being too obvious.

Anthony came up to her and poked her in the side. "Hey, they left! Did you want to go home now?"

She turned to the residents who were still eating and grinned. "Nah, we can stay a little while longer. You looked like you were having fun. Wanna help me serve this time?"

He nodded excitedly. "This is one of the best Thanksgivings I've ever had! Thanks a bunch, Penny!"

She placed a kiss on his head and pointed to the serving trays. Yup, everything was going to work out _fine_.

**Phew, I'm done with the chapter. I seriously _hated _writing it but I needed to put more Sam/Penny interaction. Now that it's done, I get to work on the Thanksgiving chapter, YES!**


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